A costly first period for the Olympiques
Gatineau – The Olympiques hosted the Cataractes de Shawinigan on Sunday afternoon at the Slush Puppie Centre for the traditional teddy bear game. However, a difficult first period and a lack of opportunism on the power play prevented the Olympiques from picking up a point for the first time in five games.
Shawinigan strikes three times
In the first period, the visitors struck first. Matvei Gridin beat Nathan St-Pierre with a wrist shot to give his team the lead. Then, a scramble in front of the Gatineau net allowed Kody Dupuis to double the Cataractes’ lead. Félix Lacerte added another moments later to make it 3-0 Shawinigan. A battle erupts in the visitors’ zone at the end of the period, with the Cataractes coming out on top. Fans will have to wait to throw their fluff, as the Olympiques retreat to the dressing room with a three-goal deficit to make up.
Goaltenders have the upper hand
In the second period, the Cataractes were buzzing in the offensive zone, but Nathan St-Pierre made a series of saves. The Olympiques had a chance on the power play halfway through the period, but it was goaltender Mathys Fernandez’s turn to make a number of saves. At the end of the period, Kody Dupuis received a four-minute penalty for high sticking. After 40 minutes, Alexis Loiseau’s men leave the game without having found the back of the net, but with the chance to start the third period with an extra man.
Paillé brings down the teddies!
In the third period, the moment we’d all been waiting for arrived: Julien Paillé (11th) unleashed a powerful shot into the top corner to send the doggies raining down on Centre Slush Puppie. It’s the first power-play goal of the game for the Gatinois, who reduce the gap to two goals. Then it’s calm after the storm. The teams exchanged the disc, but were unable to create any great scoring opportunities. In the final minutes of the game, Shawinigan is punished once again. The Olympiques pulled their goalie to take advantage of a two-man advantage. However, Mathys Fernandez closed the door and the home side lost 3-1.
All the visitors’ goals came in the first period. Head coach Alexis Loiseau struggles to understand why his men didn’t get off to a good start.
“We clearly weren’t ready to start the game, and that’s what bothered me a bit about today’s match. Then we were able to come back, but why didn’t we play a good first half? I’ll have to have a look, but for the moment, I can’t quite explain it.
Loiseau was nevertheless keen to highlight the performance of striker Gabriel Séguin.
It was his best game in a long time,” admits the head coach. He had several good chances to score, he attacked the inside. He wasn’t passive. He was involved on the forecheck and that’s what we want to see from him.
The Olympiques will be back in action on Friday December 13 against the Sherbrooke Phoenix at the Slush Puppie Centre
A text by Philippe Villeneuve
